What's the crime rate against Americans and other expats in San Miguel de Allende?
Debbie Smith
Yes there are crimes in San Miguel, just as there are in the US. HOWEVER, crimes in Mexico are NOT investigated or handled in the same manner as they are in the US. I know a close family friend who has been going to San Miguel since 1996 and was brutally beaten, almost to death, during a home invasion on a Saturday morning at 10am. It was an inside job, meaning the housekeeper who had been with them for 15 years, had let four people into the home to beat...
Yes there are crimes in San Miguel, just as there are in the US. HOWEVER, crimes in Mexico are NOT investigated or handled in the same manner as they are in the US. I know a close family friend who has been going to San Miguel since 1996 and was brutally beaten, almost to death, during a home invasion on a Saturday morning at 10am. It was an inside job, meaning the housekeeper who had been with them for 15 years, had let four people into the home to beat two people and rob them. While the police were well aware of the suspects, NOTHING was done. They didn't even question the housekeeper who was believed to have set everything up. The manner in which crimes, especially violent ones are investigated, is far from the manner that they are in the US. Do not have a false sense of security when you visit and go there knowing that you are really on your own, even when bad things happen.
Do I have to file my Canadian taxes if I retire, work or live abroad?
David Whittington - Tucan Golf Club and Resort
Personally, we have the Canadian Pension Plans plus we have the Old Age Pension, which are considered income so we still have to file on those. I believe that the only time you don’t have to file is if you supremely leave Canada; if you renounce your citizenship, etc.
However, we only have to pay income tax when the money is earned in Canada. We’re paying Panamanian taxes on the money we make here, but not Canadian tax. In Canada you...
Personally, we have the Canadian Pension Plans plus we have the Old Age Pension, which are considered income so we still have to file on those. I believe that the only time you don’t have to file is if you supremely leave Canada; if you renounce your citizenship, etc.
However, we only have to pay income tax when the money is earned in Canada. We’re paying Panamanian taxes on the money we make here, but not Canadian tax. In Canada you only can be taxed once on your income.
(Choosing at lot and home at Tucan Country Club and Resorts, Panama, pictured.)
Portugal has fantastic Internet service. There are two major internet providers that operate here in Portugal and they are very good. They also provide the cable TV channels, which is part of the package along with landline phone.
The monthly subscription to all three services: cable, phone, and Internet costs only €48 (US $52 or £35). This is high-speed Internet. We get free local calls on the landline and cable TV with over 200 channels.
The...
Portugal has fantastic Internet service. There are two major internet providers that operate here in Portugal and they are very good. They also provide the cable TV channels, which is part of the package along with landline phone.
The monthly subscription to all three services: cable, phone, and Internet costs only €48 (US $52 or £35). This is high-speed Internet. We get free local calls on the landline and cable TV with over 200 channels.
The Internet service doesn’t normally go down unless there is a terrible storm. It could also depend on where you live. If you live in the center of the city, you don’t get power outages. Where I live, which is away from the center and by the coast of Sintra, if there is a heavy storm, the power goes down and hence you won’t have Internet, either.
There is flooding in some areas of Nicaragua. The central and northern rural areas of the country are usually the most affected, due to proximity to rivers and mountains. Flooding is not common in the Pacific coast of Nicaragua. The most affected city in the Pacific area whenever we get heavy rains is Managua. You may be stuck in traffic for a few hours.
If you are traveling from one town to another during the rainy season, you also need to consider the roads you...
There is flooding in some areas of Nicaragua. The central and northern rural areas of the country are usually the most affected, due to proximity to rivers and mountains. Flooding is not common in the Pacific coast of Nicaragua. The most affected city in the Pacific area whenever we get heavy rains is Managua. You may be stuck in traffic for a few hours.
If you are traveling from one town to another during the rainy season, you also need to consider the roads you will be driving on. If the road is not paved, it can easily get very muddy and difficult do drive on.
If you're planning to move to any of the Pacific beach areas of Nicaragua, you wouldn’t need to worry about flooding, but always have to make sure to have a 4 x 4 car. Nicaragua has many unpaved roads, so this is an important thing to consider when driving in the countryside.
I have always thought of Belize to be a little bit devoid of culture. There is not a lot history because the country has only been independent since 1981, so there is not a tremendous amount of culture. There is no symphony, no opera, no theater, there are not a lot of these cultural elements that you might experience in some older nations like the US, Mexico, or Guatemala.
For the most part, the trait that most commonly comes to mind would be in regards...
I have always thought of Belize to be a little bit devoid of culture. There is not a lot history because the country has only been independent since 1981, so there is not a tremendous amount of culture. There is no symphony, no opera, no theater, there are not a lot of these cultural elements that you might experience in some older nations like the US, Mexico, or Guatemala.
For the most part, the trait that most commonly comes to mind would be in regards to their joie de vivre. People love to live here so they are always up for a barbeque, a beverage, a get together, a party, etc. That “live before you die” kind of attitude, for me, is what really makes this place special. I think that is not just Ambergris Caye, but Belize in general. They are always up for that. That makes people a little bit nicer and more open. This is one of the main elements that drew me here as opposed to other places.
Here in Belize, you are seeing real Belizean people everyday and your interacting with them everyday. People are in no rush here. They don’t care about the hustle and bustle; there is no such thing in Ambergris Caye. We live at a different pace here. Things always get done but it is not at the same kind of dog-eat-dog world speed that we are used to in the US.
(Lobster caps on Lobster Fest participants in Ambergris Caye, Belize, picutred.)
Restaurants in Coronado are great. There are restaurants with international food, Chinese, Italian, Asados (barbecues), and fast food chain restaurants like McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Subway, etc.
Restaurants in Coronado are great. There are restaurants with international food, Chinese, Italian, Asados (barbecues), and fast food chain restaurants like McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Subway, etc.
When doing a road trip anywhere, and especially in Mexico, the ability to improvise and adapt are traits that come in handy. Case I point: unfortunately, our much-anticipated plans to visit Puerto Vallarta fell through, so we would have to content ourselves with a “drive through.”
In the lavish and lovely garden area in the front of what had been our Lo de Marcos home for eight days of various parts serenity, adventure, discovery and enjoyment in the greater Nayarit...
A surprising small town with evidence of a once vibrant past is located just 60 miles (97 kilometers) from the provincial capitol, David, Panama. Only 5 miles as the crow flies from Costa Rica you will find Puerto Armuelles, Panama. It is about 21 miles south of the Pan-American Highway (at the border to Costa Rica, turn left before you go through the border crossing.)
The surprisingly good two-lane highway is under construction to become...
In Panama, the government doesn't allow insurance to be written for individuals over 62. That makes health care an important issue. Yes, it is cheaper than in the USA. However, the type of insurance available with MS Chiriqui Hospital in David has changed! (David is the closest large city to Boquete. The picture to the right is of the author, Linda Jensen.)
When we originally signed up for coverage we paid $147 per month and it had a term...